''Barnardia japonica'', the Japanese jacinth, is a

bulb In botany, a bulb is structurally a short stem with fleshy leaves or leaf basesBell, A.D. 1997. ''Plant form: an illustrated guide to flowering plant morphology''. Oxford University Press, Oxford, U.K. that function as food storage organs duri ...

ous flowering plant in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Asparagaceae Asparagaceae, known as the asparagus family, is a family of flowering plants, placed in the order Asparagales of the monocots. The family name is based on the edible garden asparagus, ''Asparagus officinalis''. Those who live in the temperate c ...

, subfamily

Scilloideae Scilloideae (named after the genus ''Scilla'', "squill") is a subfamily of bulbous plants within the family ''Asparagaceae''. Scilloideae is sometimes treated as a separate family Hyacinthaceae, named after the genus ''Hyacinthus''. Scilloideae or ...

(also treated as the family Hyacinthaceae). It is one of the two

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of the genus '' Barnardia'', found in east China, Korea, Japan, Taiwan and East Russia.

Description

The plant bears a terminal raceme of pink small flowers. It is said to resemble a fox's tail. The shape of the plant is elegant. Its habitats include open slopes and forest margins.

Systematics and taxonomy

The genus ''Barnardia'' was created by

John Lindley John Lindley FRS (5 February 1799 – 1 November 1865) was an English botanist, gardener and orchidologist. Early years Born in Catton, near Norwich, England, John Lindley was one of four children of George and Mary Lindley. George Lindley w ...

in 1826 together with the single species ''B. scilloides''. However, this species had already been described as ''Ornithogalum japonicum'' by

Carl Peter Thunberg Carl Peter Thunberg, also known as Karl Peter von Thunberg, Carl Pehr Thunberg, or Carl Per Thunberg (11 November 1743 – 8 August 1828), was a Swedish naturalist and an "apostle" of Carl Linnaeus. After studying under Linnaeus at Uppsala Un ...

in 1784, so that it is now called ''B. japonica''. The plant forms a genetic complex with two genome types, noted A and B, and

diploid Ploidy () is the number of complete sets of chromosomes in a cell, and hence the number of possible alleles for autosomal and pseudoautosomal genes. Sets of chromosomes refer to the number of maternal and paternal chromosome copies, respectively ...

, allo-triploid and aneuploid specimens in natural populations.

Natural occurrences

In China (Chinese name:棉棗兒 or 绵枣儿), it can be found in Guangdong, Guangxi, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Jilin, Liaoning, Nei Mongol, Shanxi, Sichuan and Yunnan. In Northern Taiwan, the plant occupies habitats under 700 meters high in a small amount. From July to August, it can be easily spotted on the open hillsides or fields along the roads in Dongyin and

Siyin Island Dongyin Township (Tungyin) (; Foochow Romanized: Dĕ̤ng-īng-hiŏng) is an insular rural township which is part of Lienchiang County (the Matsu Islands), Fujian Province, Republic of China (Taiwan). The islands are in the East China Sea off ...

. It also can be found in Nangan, but the majority is in Dongyin and Siyin. It has been listed as a candidate for 'Township Flower' in Dongyin. In Russia, it is found around

Vladivostok Vladivostok ( rus, Владивосто́к, a=Владивосток.ogg, p=vɫədʲɪvɐˈstok) is the largest city and the administrative center of Primorsky Krai, Russia. The city is located around the Zolotoy Rog, Golden Horn Bay on the Sea ...

, though it is probably extinct there (according to the Red Data Book of Russia).

Cultivation

''Barnardia japonica'' is cultivated as an

ornamental bulb Ornamental bulbous plants, often called ornamental bulbs or just bulbs in gardening and horticulture Horticulture is the branch of agriculture that deals with the art, science, technology, and business of plant cultivation. It includes the ...

. In a temperate climate it requires a sunny position where it flowers in the autumn. As well as the normal pink-flowered form, a white form (''Scilla scilloides var. albo-viridis'') is in cultivation., p. 1203

Uses

The leaves and roots are edible. The bulbs can be used in medicine.

Chemistry

The homoisoflavones scillavones A and B can be isolated from the bulbs of ''B japonica''. The bulb also contains eucosterol glycosides showing anti-tumor activities.Eucosterol Oligoglycosides Isolated from Scilla scilloides and Their Anti-tumor Activity. Sang-Myung Lee, Hyo-Kon Chun, Choong-Hwan Lee, Byung-Sun Min, Eun-Sook Lee and Yung-Hee Kho,

References

External links

* * * {{Taxonbar, from=Q163188 Flora of China Flora of Japan Flora of Korea Flora of Taiwan Flora of Russia Plants described in 1829 Scilloideae